The Gun-Control Movement’s Thug Tactics in Colorado

In Colorado, efforts to recall a third anti-gun politician ended this morning with the news that Senator Evie Hudak, who represents the communities of Arvada and Westminster, will resign. Hudak apparently decided that the election, which if lost could have flipped control of the state’s senate, was not worth the risk.

Hudak is one of many who backed Colorado’s hated new gun restrictions, but she is especially disliked among Second Amendment advocates for having callously dismissed the testimony of a rape survivor during a legislative hearing. The full details of that event – and the wider debate around women and firearms – are here.

Having been roundly beaten last time, the gun-control movement changed its tactics for this fight. For September’s recalls, anti-gun advocates managed to outspend their opposition by 8-1. They lost anyway. In September, they brought in heavy hitters from the Obama campaign and beyond, waging a professional campaign against rank amateurs whose campaigns were widely regarded as a waste of time. They lost anyway. In September, they had reams of positive national news coverage. They lost anyway.

This time, in desperation, the gloves came off.

“As we speak, we have multiple cars monitoring us at our offices and filming us from the parking lot,” Mike McAlpine, who headed up the recall effort, told me yesterday. “This is not a one-off event. We hold sign-and-drive events on the sidewalks near to busy intersections, and we hold signs inviting people to pull over and sign the petition. Our opponents have taken to blocking us: as cars pull in, they run up to the driver’s side door and physically stand next to the door so that the person inside cannot open the door and come outside.”